CLEMSON – Brent VenablesBrent VenablesDefensive Coordinator / LinebackersView Full Profile spoke with the media following Tuesday’s practice, the first time he has been interviewed since the regular season finale, and he covered a lot of topics.

One of the first things he was asked was about the search for a new secondary coach, and whether he would have any input into the decision.

“Maybe to a certain degree. It's Coach Swinney's hire,” Venables said. “It's got to be somebody he feels comfortable with and fits what he's looking for with this program. I'm sure he's got a number of things to look at from reputation, character, schemes, recruiting ability and being a good football coach. There's a wide variety of things. There's a bunch of qualified candidates, and he'll do due diligence in finding the best-qualified guy that meets his criteria. But I think he's seeking some input, yeah."

Graduate assistants Wesley Goodwin and Brian Mance are helping coach the secondary while the search is underway, but Venables said he is also lending a hand as the group tries to recover from a rough last two weeks of the regular season.

“Obviously, I have to be more active that way,” he said. “It has been a team effort and [Brian] Mance and Wesley [Goodwin]. It is just like it is every week – it is a staff deal. We are not reinventing the wheel or reinventing what we are doing. Just trying to be precise, and we are using these practices to get better fundamentally and get back to basics.”

"He's doing what he needs to be doing. He's doing a good job. They have a lot of heavy, two-back personnel groups. He has looked good.”

On playing against LSU

"They play at a high level that you aspire your own program to play like. If they win at the line of scrimmage, it's going to be a long night. They're going to run the football, because they're very persistent about it. We just can't allow them to get in rhythm doing it. They have the speed to attack the perimeter, but they'd definitely like to run it down your throat. They have great tradition and have played as well as anybody the last two years. They have recruited well, and they have great coaches. They play with a great sense of desperation. A great brand of toughness.”